Catching Goblins

Charles was still wearing the set of light armor he had brought from home. It offered a certain degree of protection without being overly heavy.

Over the light armor, he wore his gray apprentice robe.

He arrived at Fenny's Hand's gathering point, located at the exit of District Twelve.

Charles had four days off each month at the Magic Beast slaughterhouse, yet he had not taken a single day off this month.

After finishing work during the day, he was preparing to set out at dusk.

Counting it up, he had four days and five nights.

By the time he reached the gathering point, five people had already assembled there. Including Charles himself, they formed a team of six.

Once they arrived at their destination, the man leading the group stepped forward with a sword in hand and said, "Now that everyone's here, let's introduce ourselves."

"I'm Beck. These two are the team's original members, Davis and Carter."

Beck wore heavy armor, while the other two wore light armor similar to Charles's.

"I'm Charles."

"Cotton."

"Leslie!"

After hearing their introductions, Beck said, "I'll explain this mission."

"The task of catching goblins is an old Fenny's Hand assignment, issued by a wizard."

"Originally, only Davis, Carter, and I handled it. But now this wizard has increased his demand for goblins, so we need to recruit more team members."

"The three of you all possess knight-level strength. I hope we can form a long-term team from now on."

Charles and the other two nodded slightly.

Beck waved a hand. "All right, let's get in the carriage first. I'll explain how the mission works on the way."

The six of them boarded a spacious carriage.

The carriage carried Charles and the others down the slope behind Isata.

Compared to Isata's front, which was one massive stretch of stone, the terrain behind it was much gentler.

As the carriage wound its way downward, Beck began explaining the mission. "The goblins we're catching aren't the goblins you remember."

"Goblins have an enormous range in strength. Weak goblins can be easily dealt with even by ordinary serfs, while powerful goblins are said to possess strength rivaling that of powerful wizards."

"We're heading into the city district behind Isata and catching goblins in its complex sewers."

"The task only requires this kind of goblin. Compared to their kin, they are far stronger."

"Only goblins with knight-level strength count as Magic Stones. No matter how many other goblins you catch, they are useless."

Charles asked, "Are there many goblins of that strength in the sewers of the lower city district?"

Beck nodded. "Yes. Lots."

"This is Isata. Some Second-Rank and First-Rank apprentices, even wizards, conduct all kinds of experiments and brew potions in their laboratories. Waste potions, Demonic Beast blood, and even huge amounts of medicinal dregs containing magical effects are poured into the sewers."

"Everything that flows down from the various high towers—those potions and such—eventually runs into the sewers of the lower city district."

"So the sewers beneath Isata are nothing like the sewers in your hometown cities."

"The sewers here are vast, and all sorts of strange creatures live inside. Goblins already have extremely mixed bloodlines, so in this environment, they are even more likely to mutate!"

"This time, we're only searching the outskirts. If we manage to catch some newly mutated goblins, we'll all make a fortune!"

As Beck spoke, Charles and the other two newcomers gained a better understanding of the mission.

He turned back to look at towering Isata, his thoughts in turmoil.

Wizards loved conducting every kind of research. The whole place was practically a colossal research base. The waste and garbage they dumped might be useless to wizards.

But for other things, who knew what bizarre monstrosities it might give rise to?

No wonder this mission paid so well.

Beck smiled. "As long as we search only the outskirts, the danger isn't great. I'm still a Second-Rank Wizard Apprentice and have experience dealing with goblins. Besides, this task pays a lot of Magic Stones."

"One goblin that meets the requirements is worth three Magic Stones. And if you're lucky enough to catch a mutated goblin, the price ranges from a dozen to several dozen Magic Stones."

The newcomer Cotton asked, "Are mutated goblins all very strong?"

Beck shook his head. "No, no, no. Not necessarily. Some mutated goblins are very weak, but they're worth a high price."

"The price of a mutated goblin has nothing to do with its strength. It depends on the degree of mutation."

"If we run into powerful goblins, we just turn around and run. There's no need to fight them head-on!"

"Besides that, we can cut off the ears of any goblins we kill and exchange them for bounty money. These districts are plagued by goblins—every ten goblin ears can be exchanged for a Magic Stone bounty!"

"That's great!" Charles and the others said happily.

After traveling for three or four hours, the carriage finally reached its destination.

After getting out of the carriage, Beck led the group to a small courtyard.

Several large iron cages, chains, and all kinds of tools for imprisoning goblins were stored there.

Pointing at the cages, Beck said, "For this mission, we catch as many goblins as we can. If we can fill all these cages, every one of us can get at least several dozen Magic Stones."

"Let's rest for a while, then we'll set out!"

After resting for about an hour, Beck led everyone out.

Quite a few people lived in this city district. Some were local residents dependent on Isata, while more were servants who had failed to become Third-Rank Wizard Apprentices.

Some settled down here and raised families, eventually forming one city district after another.

In the eyes of wizards, these servants were perhaps inseparable from the role of expendable materials.

Charles had no time for sentiment. He put on his light armor, strapped a longsword at his waist, carried a kite-shaped iron shield in one hand, and gripped a long-handled iron fork in the other. Calling him fully armed would not have been an exaggeration.

The others were equipped much the same way.

The iron forks were for capturing goblins alive. When they encountered a suitable goblin, they could pin it down and lock it in place.

Beck's other two teammates, Davis and Carter, had also brought some iron chains.

For this mission, aside from the six people entering the sewers, Beck had hired another six servants.

Two of those servants would remain aboveground, driving the carriage loaded with iron cages and waiting.

The remaining four would go down with them and handle miscellaneous chores when the time came.

Late at night, with the surroundings long swallowed by darkness, they arrived at a sewer entrance.

Carter and Davis stepped forward and used a key to unlock the iron grate.

Beck took out several gauze scarves and handed them to the others. Then, shield raised, he took the lead into the sewer.

"Let's go!"

Holding torches, they entered the broad sewer system beneath the city district.

A pungent, fishy stench hit them head-on. Fortunately, they had the scarves, or else the smell would have stung their eyes.

Cotton could not help saying, "It fucking reeks!"